Started the new coop build

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Happy birds
 

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I didnt want to start a new thread and search for photos, so I decided to just add on from here so members know what I built. This is going on year 3 and still holding up strong. A few things I am debating is modifying the nesting box door and relocating them to the floor level since a few tend to keep laying in those 2 corners under the nesting boxes , something I will do this spring or summer. I decided not to keep the light in the coop this year as Ive never had issues before and decided to give the girls a break from laying... BUT this winter, although mild compared to last, we got about 3" ice with a foot of snow on top which ended up stranding me in the driveway for 2 weeks until I could bust up 2 paths for the tires to get onto the main road. Now with that said, I never had the water barrel freeze in the coop but this year it froze, including the drip nipple lines??? Coop is fairly comfortable and cant figure out why its freezing this year unless I dont have enough wood shavings on the floor ( not as deep as before ) so Ill add more soon and see if that helps. In general, the coop is doing really well for them and us. When I built it, I took into consideration of the door locations and weather so nothing gets blocked for any reason, the location is great for shade in the summers and sun in the winter BUT with it being built as a lean-to on the shop, sometimes the smell gets heavy in the summer as I had 16 birds now I just have 6 and may reduce to 3 as we still get too many eggs and no one has been buying for awhile now... so the smell shouldnt be an issue anymore But Im still debating relocating the coop to the back of the property as we will be putting up a large green house this year, hoping for year round veggies as we have plenty of compost and fertilizer makers LOL
Now, I just need to figure out how to protect the water barrel a little better for these worst case scenarios, Im thinking to wrap it in insulation thats safe for the girls, pool noodles on the lines should protect the those from freezing OR I just need to put that light back in ( not a heat lamp, just a regular bulb )
Anyways, Just thought Id give a bit of an update and concerns, more pics to come with any modifications when they happen.
 

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A few things I am debating is modifying the nesting box door and relocating them to the floor level since a few tend to keep laying in those 2 corners under the nesting boxes

I had a short term problem with some of my younger hens laying eggs on the floor in a corner. I just blocked off that portion of the coop and they moved to laying eggs in the nest boxes. Now, it's no longer a problem.

But Im still debating relocating the coop to the back of the property as we will be putting up a large green house this year, hoping for year round veggies as we have plenty of compost and fertilizer makers LOL

Having the chicken coop and run in the same area as your garden is a great idea. I moved my garden to my chicken coop and run in my backyard and that was the best decision I made. Now my garden is sitting right next to my compost workers!

Now, I just need to figure out how to protect the water barrel a little better for these worst case scenarios, Im thinking to wrap it in insulation thats safe for the girls, pool noodles on the lines should protect the those from freezing OR I just need to put that light back in ( not a heat lamp, just a regular bulb )

I live in northern Minnesota. We have months and months of freezing cold temps. I use a combination of 3-gallon metal water fount and metal heater base. I keep the feed and water inside my unheated coop, but the water has remained ice free down to -40F inside the coop.

Google picture like my setup...

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My 3-gallon waterer lasts about 10 days for 10 chickens before it needs to be refilled. Not too bad. Fresh water is so important.

💲 Whatever heating system you get for your water, try to get a system that turns on and off depending on the temperature. No need to spend extra money heating water that does not need it. I think my metal base heater turns on around 38F and turns off at 45F. It has work flawlessly for 4+ years.
 
That story was quite a ride - sounds like you didn't have to sell the place and got the new improved coop up and running, so that's great. I like the idea of a green house. I'm just getting started with raised beds, and trying to grow more of what we eat.
 
That story was quite a ride - sounds like you didn't have to sell the place and got the new improved coop up and running, so that's great. I like the idea of a green house. I'm just getting started with raised beds, and trying to grow more of what we eat.
The soil here is crap, cant get anything to grow, made a few raised beds but just too crowded. Going to bring in garden soil from St Louis Compost by the dumptruck load as we used it before and the garden blossomed excellently... so thats what this greenhouse will have plus my black gold from the chickens/compost.
 
The soil here is crap, cant get anything to grow, made a few raised beds but just too crowded. Going to bring in garden soil from St Louis Compost by the dumptruck load as we used it before and the garden blossomed excellently... so thats what this greenhouse will have plus my black gold from the chickens/compost.
I hear you. While my place is in the woods with really wonderful soil, it’s insanely rocky so very hard to dig and plant things. We even have a coal seam running under our land. That’s why I’m doing raised beds. I’m looking forward to having the chicken manure to compost.
 
I hear you. While my place is in the woods with really wonderful soil, it’s insanely rocky so very hard to dig and plant things. We even have a coal seam running under our land. That’s why I’m doing raised beds. I’m looking forward to having the chicken manure to compost.
Same here, 6 acres surrounded by farmlands ( mainly horses and cattle ) rocky ground and some sorta clay soil, that doesnt look like clay... nearby quarries too. Cant dig but a few inches and hit bedrock and limestone. Septic guys had their work cut out for them LOL
 

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